100+T. VeggieTales Case Study 37.2% 64% 35,000. Optimize. Attract. Build CONVERSION OPTIMIZATION RESULTS SITUATION HOW WE DID IT

Transcription

1 Y+63 wy+36 Build Attract Optimize CONVERSION OPTIMIZATION Case Study RESULTS 17.4% increase in revenue per category page visitor 13.9% increase in revenue per product page visitor 14.3% increase in revenue per checkout page visitor SITUATION wanted to systematically optimize the design of their entire site to enable it to perform better for visitors. HOW WE DID IT By first examining their analytics, we were able to determine where to start testing and what to test using Optimizely s optimization testing platform % 100+T 35, % increase YOY in revenue per visitor visitors tested for statistical significance increase YOY in conversion rate

2 VEGGIETALES CASE STUDY is a leading animated home video series among moms with preschoolers in the United States. Since 1993, has sold over 70 million videos, 15 million books, and more than 7 million CDs. They had their site designed and built by another agency, and they suspected that the design was causing their revenue and conversion rates to suffer. They came to the Optimization Team at Blue Acorn for direction and results. At Blue Acorn, we believe in redesigning with Intelligence. This means we study our clients analytics, examine their current designs, and form Intelligent hypotheses before deciding what to test and how to test it. Our analytics research on site led us to start with three of their page types: the category page, the product page, and the checkout page. Conversion Rate vs. RPV Commitment To Data At Blue Acorn, we take a scientific approach to our services that relies on proven results to guide our decisions, which is why we are the only agency in the world to hold certified partnerships with Magento, Optimizely, and Google Analytics. Our ecommerce expertise allows our team to form hypotheses, but it is actual data that enables us to provide our clients with the best results possible. store.veggietales.com l Officia Optimizely is the world s leading optimization testing platform. It s not just that they have a better product. They also focus on a better metric. Like our partners at Optimizely, we feel the truest metric for measuring the success of optimization testing for an ecommerce site is Revenue Per Visitor (RPV). Increasing a client s conversion rate is easy if they start to sell everything at 90% off, but that would kill their revenue, which - in terms of purpose - is what sets an ecommerce site apart from a website, where conversion rates typically refer to sign-up forms. Now, this is a dramatic example, and improving your conversion rate is still a good goal. However, ecommerce entrepreneurs should focus on RPV as their primary Key Performance Indicator (KPI). It s also important to note the difference between visits and visitors. Whereas Google Analytics - by default - determines a site s ecommerce conversion rate using the number of visits to transactions, Optimizely measures RPV as the average revenue per (unique) visitor, which we believe to be a more accurate look at how your site is performing.

3 VEG G I ETAL ES CAT EG O RY PAG E store.veggietales.com l Original Page Official Store category pages had featured very large, bright, distracting banners. Customers landing on the page didn t have general guidance on where to go, and they were getting distracted from finding products they wanted and continuing to the product page. Hypothesis: Dropping the banners would result in a higher RPV. store.veggietales.com l Official Store Results: Without the banner, category pages produced a 17.4% increase in RPV. Statistical Confidence Level: 95.3% +17.4% revenue per visitor

4 VEGGIETALES PRODUCT PAGE store.veggietales.com/pistachio-the-little-boy-that-woodn-t-veggietales-dvd.html Pistachio: The Little Boy That Woodn t DVD Original Page Using custom heat mapping tools, we confirmed that current product pages had very poor spacing, distracting attributes, and lacked organization. They weren t awful by any means, but they weren t optimal either. Hypothesis: Improving the spacing and increasing the prominence of the primary call-to-action will result in a higher RPV. store.veggietales.com/pistachio-the-little-boy-that-woodn-t-veggietales-dvd.html Pistachio: The Little Boy That Woodn t DVD Results: The product page variation produced a 13.9% increase in RPV. Statistical Confidence Level: 96.1% +13.9% revenue per visitor

5 VEGGIETALES CHECKOUT PAGE store.veggietales.com/checkout-onepage/ Checkout Original Page This is where ecommerce conversions happen. However, checkout page included all of the same header and footer elements that were found on every other page of the site. They re good elements, but they become unnecessary distractions to a visitor on the verge of trying to convert to a customer. Hypothesis: Simplifying the checkout by removing all of the distractions in the header and footer - except those designed to act as confidence builders - will result in a higher RPV. store.veggietales.com/checkout-onepage/ Checkout Results: The more streamlined checkout page variation produced a 14.3% increase in RPV. Statistical Confidence Level: 98.1% +14.3% revenue per visitor

6 Understanding Statistical Significance The statistical confidence level references in this case study allude to the statistical significance of each test, which is the likelihood that the variation will beat the baseline. Given the average revenue per visitor data collected in this experiment, what is the likelihood that the actual average revenue per visitor for the variation is higher than the actual average revenue per visitor for the baseline? In other words, what is the likelihood that the observed average revenue per visitor increases are not a fluke? Statistical significance is needed to prove this. Once a statistical significance of 95% or higher is reached, most optimization professionals will agree that the results are not a fluke. More information on the science behind this can be found in Optimizely s Knowledge Base on their company website. Newfound Success It s far from over. The design improvements has experienced thus far, which have resulted in 37.2% sitewide increase YOY in RPV, are just the beginning. By doing our due diligence before we began testing, Blue Acorn was able to identify the lowest of the low-hanging fruit, in order to produce the quickest gains for our client. These initial three tests were simply the first three on a roadmap of tests that we have planned. Using Optimizely dramatically cuts down on the time these tests take to set up, which means the amount our clients are billed pales in comparison to the returns they see on such investments. This is important because you should always be testing. Every aspect of your site that make sense to test should be tested. Every change you make to your site should be tested. It s what s best for your customers, and it s what s best for your business. Blue Acorn Blue Acorn is a premium ecommerce agency helping retailers and brands achieve revenue growth through a comprehensive, data-driven approach. In addition to being an Optimizely Certified Partner, Blue Acorn is also recognized as a Google Analytics Certified Partner. They are committed to delivering Intelligent ecommerce solutions rooted in data and driven by their best-inclass design, development, marketing, and optimization capabilities. Optimizely Optimizely is the layer on top of the web that enables businesses to deliver better experiences and drive top line improvements to their websites. Using Optimizely as a split testing tool, marketers create different versions of their web pages and can measure how changes affect performance. The results can be shocking and unlock dramatic revenue gains. The company closed a $28 million Series A financing round led by Benchmark Capital in April is a wholly owned subsidiary of DreamWorks Animation s division, Big Idea Entertainment, a leading studio and producer of children and family programming, characters and brands. Big Idea s best-selling series,, is a one of the most recognized brands in the US among mothers of preschoolers and has enjoyed four seasons as a top-rated series on NBC Saturday mornings, Telemundo, and ION TV. blueacorn.com Rutledge Ave, Suite 101 Charleston, SC Tel